Let me comfort you
by CatMuto
Summary: A collection of indipendent One Shots revolving around Zack and Aerith  Aeris . Chapter ratings vary between T Rated and M Rated. Zerith ZackAeris ZackAerith ZackxAerith ZackxAeris
1. A picture, please

Welcome to a new collection of stories of mine!  
>A series of One Shots about Zack and Aerith from Final Fantasy VII, none of them<br>linked together unless noted otherwise. Actually, this One Shot was supposed to  
>begin with the chapter called "Let Me Comfort You" but due to it's M Rating and<br>a few things still needing to be changed, we begin with this one!

Finally some free time again, Zack heads out on a date with Aerith. And he has  
>a goal to fulfill before he goes home that day.<p>

* * *

><p>With a grin stretching from one ear to another, Zack left the president's office with a new spring<p>

in his step. After pressing the elevator button, he casually flicked open his cellphone and dialed

a number well-known to him. The elevator arrived with a bing and the young SOLDIER member entered,

waiting for the phone to be picked up at the other end of the line.

"_Zack?_" answered a soothing voice, a little note swinging in it.

"Guess who got the rest of the day absolutely off?" Zack replied, grinning even more.

"_Hmmm_" the voice went in a mocking fashion. "_Kunsel?_"

He chuckled slightly, thinking about his comrade. "Nah. Not him. Me, of course."

"_Of course._"

"So, if you're free, we can do something." a bit nervous about the possibility of being rejected,

Zack felt his breath stop as he waited for her to answer.

"_I still have to finish something with my mother .. but I don't expect it to take long._"

"Take your time. Meet you at the church?" Zack asked and, when he got the confirmation to

meet there, he hung up with a quick 'see you soon'.

With the phone conversation over, he finally turned his attention back to the elevator which

had been sitting stationarily on the floor and pressed the down button. Zack's mind drifted

to the date. Meeting at the church was a standard for them - Aerith spent most of her time

there, anyway, and it was pretty easy to find and get to from the train station. Frowning,

he wondered what they could do. Granted, there wasn't much to do in the Slums - unless

time was spent either taking a walk, looking at the merchandise at the big market or just to

talk at the little run-down playground.

But with Aerith's fear, they didn't have all that much choice ... a sudden idea sprung into

Zack's head and he stopped the elevator, getting off at the research facility floor and headed

towards the experimental area.

It was about twenty minutes later that he, after much persuasive talk and begging and hearing

instructions, left the ShinRa building, tucking something into his pocket. Excited, and even proud,

about his clever little idea, he almost dashed to the train station and hitched a ride to Sector 5.

"Hey there", "Hi, Zack!" and similar greetings were directed towards him as he tore through the

Slums' streets and market. He waved or nodded towards the greeters - what with having gone

down so often to see Aerith, and Aerith being pretty well-known and liked, the people living in

the Slums had grown accostumed to seeing him and slowly began to think that not _all_ the

people working for ShinRa were bad.

Seeing the small, run-down church a few meters ahead, the ravenhaired young man thought that

it was lucky that Aerith was still busy helping her mother. This way, he had some time to prepare

things and give Aerith a pleasant surprise.

* * *

><p>Time passed, almost an hour gone, and Zack stood in front of the church, leaning against one of<p>

the pillars for support and waited. Pleased that he had finished his preparations, he was also a

bit worried. Not very, though, as Aerith hadn't said that she would hurry to meet him.

He didn't know what she was doing for her mother, so he remained patient and not give in to the

slight urge to call her on his phone again. But he needn't wait any longer.

"I've kept you waiting." her soft voice said apologetically.

Happy that she had arrived, Zack kicked off from the pillar and turned towards her, about to say

that he hadn't waited so long and didn't mind, but his voice failed him. His eyes were busy studying

her apperance.

Aerith was wearing a strapless dress that had a mother-of-pearl sheen to it, with an intricate silver

border and an identically colored bolero jacket with low hanging puffed sleeves. She still had her

hair held back by the pink ribbon but had undone her braid and her long hair fell in one luscious

wave after another. One of her hands was busy carrying a small wicker basket.

His mouth hanging slightly open, Zack just stared at her, the elegant figure the dress gave her,

how she almost looked like a fragile doll with her fair shoulders peeking out. The girl blushed

slightly at his silence and tugged at her jacket.

"I look weird, huh ..?"

"What? No, no. Not .. not at all." Zack gasped, snapping out of his stupor and scratched the back

of his head embarrassed. "It .. it looks really good on you." He wanted to say beautiful or stunning.

Tell her how the dress gave her a sophisticated nature, the aura of a young lady but he couldn't.

None of those words were even remotely close to describing the effect she really had on him.

Aerith giggled, still blushing. "Thank you." She cocked her head slightly to the side when he still

didn't seem to stir anymore. "Did you have anything special planned?"

Trying to collect himself, Zack shook his head slightly and then nodded. "Yup. I think I've got a

really good idea. Come on." he beckoned her to follow him. Curious, Aerith did, walking up the

broken steps to her church and entered when the soldier held the door open for her.

Wondering what they were supposed to do in the church, she glanced around but saw nothing out

of the ordinary. She saw the old pews, the large hole in the ceiling that shone brightly onto the

small patch of flowers that had grown in the dirt and the slight pattern that the stained glass

was throwing feebly onto the walls with the little light it got.

Zack led the way, down the aisle and around the patch, careful not to step on the flowers and

then stopped, turning towards her. Grinning slightly, he took her free hand into his.

"For this part, I want you to close your eyes." he said, his voice swinging with carefree excitement

like a young boy. Aerith smiled at his expression and nodded, obediently closing her green eyes

and was surrounded by darkness. She felt helpless, the only contact she had was her hand in

Zack's and she was relying on him completely.

"Let me be your eyes." Zack's voice whispered gently, like he had read her thoughts. Aerith felt

a slight tug at her hand and took that as a sign to walk. Taking timid steps, she heard their

footsteps echoing on the creaky wooden floorboards of the empty church, the groan of a door

as it was pushed open.

Trying to orient herself by where he was leading her, Aerith wondered why he was bringing her

into the backroom which, years ago, had been used for private ceremonies. However, she wasn't

sure if he really was bringing her there or just led her through, but their steps made no sound

anymore and the usual draft from the church had turned warmer.

"Okay .. you can open 'em again." Zack's voice told her as he held her hand loosely in his and

stepped aside. Following his order, Aerith opened her eyes.

They were in the backroom of the church.

But instead of the grey, broken floorboards with the empty barrels and crashed down ceiling,

they were surrounded by a large open field that kept going on and on. A warm breeze was

fluttering gently around them and Aerith was staring at the one thing that really got her

attention. The flowers.

Dozens and thousands of flowers, dancing in that breeze, making a play of golden and white

petals. Different types of flowers, either clustered together in a corner or mixed up with others

to make bouquets peeking out from the grass growing among them.

Amazed, Aerith let go of the man's hand and took a careful step forward, her head turning this and

that way to see everything. There were no trees or bushes or anything, just miles of flowers

and grass and, watching her, Zack standing close to her. His eyes were on her, watching how

she studied her surroundings, a natural smile tugging at his lips.

"It's .." Aerith began, finding her voice again but couldn't go on. Her voice failed her again.

She walked amongst the flowers, trying to step on them as little as possible and just stared

and stared. "Zack, .. how?" Still smiling, Zack caught up to her and kneeled down, slowly

pushing back a cluster of flowers and pointed. Bending down to see better, Aerith saw what

looked like a metal disc, about the size of her palm, on the ground. There were several little

lights alit on it, a display kept flashing some indistinguishable letters off and on.

"It's a virtual display." Zack explained and saw her still looking unknowing. "ShinRa has been

using virtual reality to train SOLDIER members through different scenarios - the researchers

have been working on a portable version for a while now, so that rookies could train even

during mission breaks or when they were out. It's a prototype, that's why they allowed me

to use it - like a testrun. But I don't know how long it'll hold this up."

Aerith knelt down to be on the same height as him, her eyes searched his and he could

read what her next question was going to be.

"Well .. I _did_ promise you I'd show you a sky you're not afraid of. Even if it's not a real one."

Slowly, carefully as if she was afraid of falling, she lifted her head and turned to look up at

the pale blue mantle above them. There were only a few slivers of clouds on it, but the

rest was nought but a pale blue color, although it had the same intense radiance like

the soldier's eyes.

* * *

><p>Aerith was lying on her back, the skirt of her dress flareing out around her legs and her<p>

eyes set on Zack's above her, although her gaze kept straying past him back to that

bright blue.

It wasn't a real sky, but she wasn't afraid of looking at it. For once, she could look up

and not hear the whispering of countless souls, that opressing feeling in her chest.

Finally, she understood what people meant when they looked up into the sky and

said they felt free. Staring at it made her feel like she could sprout wings and take off.

Feeling Zack shift under her, Aerith wanted to ask if he was getting restless with her

head on his lap, but he slowly moved sideways and leaned down until his head was

in her lap and they lay like two halves of a whole.

"Thank you, Zack." Aerith said, turning her head to look at him better.

"I knew you'd like it." he answered, grinning again.

She smiled at him again, then closed her eyes, to just lie there and feel the warm breeze

tickling her skin and be surrounded by flowers. But a few seconds later a sound startled

her and she sat up a bit.

"Sorry." Zack said and Aerith saw his cellphone in his hand. He noticed her confused

look. "I had to take a picture .. you just looked too cute."

Blushing slightly, Aerith sat up and fixated her eyes onto Zack's and cocked her head

to the side. "Why did you want my picture?"

Avoiding her gaze, Zack looked almost embarrassed and then sighed. "Well, back at

the company, the guys always brag about their girlfriends and showin' their pictures

and stuff like that. So, I wanted to have a picture of my girlfriend to shove into their

face - give 'em a little payback."

Aerith's cheeks flushed at the way he called her his girlfriend, but then collected herself.

".. is it okay if I take some pictures of you?" he asked, looking insecure. "Cause, if you

don't wan' me to, I'll delete this one."

"Isn't your question a bit late?" she answered back, but smiled to show that she wasn't

angry at him. "Sure. Take as many as you like."

Zack grinned happily and sat up with a jolt, ready to take pictures of Aerith at a moment's

notice. He wanted a lot of them, to really show her off and make his comrades jealous for

him having such a beautiful girl. Finally, he'd be able to pay them back for those hours he

was forced to look at _their_ girls.

The two of them didn't spend much of the next time talking, mostly just enjoying the

other's company while looking at the flowers or lying among them, smelling the sweet

and slightly tangy scent.

Aerith kneeling amongst the flowers, carefully running a fingertip over a few petals.

Aerith making a wreath, pretending playfully to set it on top of Zack's head before

decorating her own with it.

Aerith turning towards the soldier and smiling.

Those and others were all moments that Zack caught with his phone. Although she had

given him permission to take as many as he wanted, he made sure not to take too many,

because he thought that it might make Aerith feel uncomfortable.

* * *

><p>Both left the church's backroom several hours later, when the display of the field began<p>

to slowly flicker with increasing intensity until all the flowers, the blue sky and warm

breeze disappeared and left behind the normal, cold room.

Trying to remember how long it had managed to withstand use, Zack put it back into

his pocket before beginning to head out.

"I want to thank you again, Zack." Aerith said as they approached the church doors.

"It was nothing." he waved off with a lazy grin. "Glad to see that you enjoyed it. And I

want to thank you for letting me take pictures."

The Slums looked as dark as night, as they usually did, although the time was clearly

around late evening. The top layer of Midgar was most likely caressed by a gold and

pink layer of light, but that was something that wasn't seen below. Descending the

steps, Zack hesitated, the way he usually did when the time for going separate ways

came, and turned towards Aerith who was just stepping off the last step. She caught

his eyes and looked at him with a polite interest.

"Ah, I forgot .. can I take one last picture?" Zack asked, slapping his hands together

in a begging fashion. "Of us together? I promise, it's the last one!"

"Fine by me." Aerith stood next to him as the soldier held out his cellphone in front of

him. With a slight hesitation, he put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her a bit

closer to him, feeling her warm body next to his.

"Say, Aerith .."

"Mh?" Aerith turned and lifted her head slightly so she could look him in the face when

she felt his warm lips kissing her forehead softly, aware how both of their hearts began

to beat faster and the next second the cellphone made a clacking sound, the final

picture having been taken.

When they both backed off a little, Aerith saw that Zack's cheeks had flushed as much

as her must have, again with a grin tugging at his lips. He looked embarrassed and

apologetic, like he was waiting to be told off for suddenly surprising like that.

"Geez .." Aerith muttered and gave the soldier a playful little shove, but laughed when

they got to the trainstation and had to go separate ways, waving until both couldn't

see each other anymore as the train left the station, bringing Zack back to ShinRa.

* * *

><p>The idea with Zack showing Aerith that field sprang into my head as I was writing this,<br>looking for something to have them do for the chapter. I chose to have Aerith wear  
>her Amano designed dress, because I think it looks really beautiful. And I fell in love with<br>it when I first saw it as a render in Dissidia.


	2. Like a dream

And the next chapter. Not sure which one it'll be as I have about three ideas revolving  
>in my head at this very moment. Let's see what'll happen if I just start writing ..<br>It must be good, as it's ZackxAerith!

**M-Rated!**

* * *

><p>Aerith was rushing towards him. The skirt of her pink dress flared behind her as she ran and waved,<p>

not stopping until she was just in front of him. She halted and put her hand to her chest, taking

deep breaths to regain her posture and finally sighed. She lifted her head to look into his eyes and

smiled sweetly, "I'm sorry I'm late."

"You're worth the wait." he said and, on impulse, put his arms around her waist and pulled her closer

to him, feeling her warm body next to his and just barely the outline of her gently curving figure.

Aerith was surprised by his sudden movement, standing stiffly in his arms but relaxed fast enough and

let her body fall into the embrace, her arms wrapping themselves around his neck, her fingers playing

with a few of his ebony tresses.

The two lovers stood that way for a while, enjoying the touch of the other, listening to their hearts

beating and knowing that the other is there with them. They didn't know for sure how long they didn't

move and it didn't matter to them. They had locked themselves into their own world, not allowing

anybody or anything to get between them, to rip them out of it and back into reality. Slowly, though,

Aerith leaned back a bit to remain in the embrace but made sure she could move enough to see into

the soldier's face and found herself once again dazzled by their intensely strong blue color. They were

like the sky that she usually feared, but not like this. She could look into his eyes for hours or days

without growing tired of it or feeling that heavy wave of discomfort rising inside of her. They were the

prettiest eyes she had ever seen.

And although she might not believe it, the soldier was just as struck by her green eyes. While his

reminded her of the sky, hers reminded him of the planet. That rich, deep green color with the slightest

touch of blue seemed like they were the planet themselves - luscious fields with the ocean surrounding

them. Zack placed his forehead against hers as they lost each other in their partner's eyes.

"Zack ..?" she whispered, her soft breath tickling his skin as she tried to be as quiet as possible to not

ruin the wonderful mood around them.

"Mh?" a smile tugged at his lips.

"I love you." she whispered again, her eyes dancing with tears that were trying to escape. The soldier

held her closer to himself, kissing her eyelids to wipe away the tears.

"I love you, too." he answered in the same whispered voice, caressing her lips with his, grasping their

heartshaped form before gently pressing his lips onto hers. She reciprocated the kiss immediately,

standing on her toes to be closer to him, tightening her arms around him and feeling him holding her.

It took them a long time to finally break the kiss off, but they kept the distance as little as possible.

"Do you really?" Aerith asked, a little chuckle rising in her throat.

"Of course I do."

She cocked her head slightly to the side, a rogueish smirk tugging at her lips. "Prove it."

His grip around her waist tightened, almost lifting her off her feet, as he surpressed a laugh and he

barely managed to do so. "What did you have in mind?"

"Surprise me."

Almost like acting on instinct, Zack pulled Aerith closer, letting his hands roam over her back and

he felt her shiver slightly from the warm touch. Feeling her, Zack slowly became more aware of

their surroundings. They were in a bedroom. The walls and floor were covered by dark wood, a recliner

with beige cushions was standing in a corner and had bookcases flanking it's side. Carefully, Zack kissed

Aerith again and leaned forwards to fall onto the bed. They fell slowly, like time had slowed down for them

as they landed softly on the white sheets that felt like clouds underneath them. Feeling the springs move

under them, Aerith broke the kiss off and the soldier saw her eyes open a big wider, something in them

that wasn't quite fear.

".. Aerith?" Zack asked, his hand caressing her cheek, and waited for a response or a reaction that told

him how she felt about what he was about to do. He had never told her how much he had wanted her,

he was afraid that she might hate him for it. Aerith averted her eyes from him for a few moments, which

he took as a sign of rejection, but slowly they looked back at him and with her cheeks blushing a deep

rosé color, she nodded slightly.

The soldier's heart made a big jump at that little gesture and wipe a tiny tear collecting in the corner

of her eye, so he leaned down to her ear. "I'll be as gentle as I can."

"Mh" she nodded, knowing that she could trust him and gasped slightly when he kissed her neck the

next second. His hands travelled along her body, feeling how it curved in all the right places and he

couldn't help but think how the soft fabric was the only thing between him touching her skin directly.

His kisses became hotter, urging for more and Aerith complied happily the little game his tongue

played with hers and he could feel the heat rising her body, the way it was doing in his. Soon enough

the little dress was pulled off, both rather frustrated over the need to break the contact between

their lips and immediately touched again. The girl arched her back slightly, getting her body as close

to his as she could and gripped his hand, letting her nerves get the better of her although her body

was beginning to beg for more. Putting her at ease, Zack squeezed her hand, not taking his eyes off

of her own and saw a new side to the flowergirl. The pink of her cheeks was ascentuated by the few

curls that had been tossed around, framing her face, feeling her hot breath coming out of her slightly

parted lips faster and a different type of glint in her eyes which began to look misty. Holding her hand

tighter in his, he let his eyes study her body. The slight sheen of sweat made her already fair skin

look even paler and almost seem to glitter, it was beautiful. Aerith looked prettier than she had ever

seem to him and he wondered what had chosen to have him be loved by such a beauty.

"Zack .." she whimpered, her voice swinging with a mixture of discomfort by his prolonged gaze but

also of desire, longing for him to stop teasing her like that. He leaned down, kissing her soft lips again

and used his free hand to caress her body, along her waist and hips, feeling her shiver under his touch

and gently persuaded her to open herself to him. Aerith sighed into the kiss when he touched a

particularely sensitive part and locked her legs around his waist, trying to pull him closer although they

already were touching with as much contact as they could.

And slowly the bed began to rock, becoming more intense over time and Aerith's pleased cries became

more freqeuent as she clung to Zack.

"Zack ..!"

"Aerith .."

"Zack .. Oi, Zack."

With a start, Zack opened his eyes and it took him a few seconds to figure out where he was.

He was lying in his single bed in ShinRas SOLDIER department, clinging to his pillow and turned slightly

to see another SOLDIER member with his hand on his shoulder. Sadly, Zack figured out that the bed

rocking hadn't come from his love making with Aerith but of the guy trying to wake him up.

"You gotta get up. Director Lazard's calling." the other soldier told him and sighed when Zack groaned

and fell back into his pillow, burrying his face in the process.

".. I'm takin' a day off." the ravenhaired man finally said audibly enough for his comrade to shrug his

shoulders and left, relaying that message to the director. Zack sighed, annoyed at the abrupt waking

and felt an annoying tightness in his pants. Pummeling the pillow to make it more comfortable, he fell

back and tried to relax, hoping he could repeat the dream he just had or hope against hope that he

might get the continued dream.

* * *

><p>I was wondering at first if I should make the dream part in italics, but then thought it might<br>take the surprise that it _is_ all just a dream away. So I opted for this. I'm pretty sure there's gonna  
>be a chapter that is mostly a dream that Aerith is having, I might make the dream sequences<br>more obvious then.


	3. Failure to overcome it

Okay, this One Shot is another date one. I actually wanted to put some other types of One Shots  
>in before I write another date. But this idea came to me during the first One Shot and this one is<br>more of the slightly angsty variety, so I wanted to differ the moods all over the place.

* * *

><p>"What?" Aerith lifted her head from the flowerbed before her to look into the soldier's eyes.<p>

He was kneeling at the other end of the flowerbed, his hands on his knees as he was looking at her

with his typically boyish expression.

"I thought we could go to the different Sectors for the day." he smiled gently. "I know that you are

afraid of the sky, but maybe a trip outside could help you conquer your fear." Admittingly, he wanted

to get out of the Slums with her, to a place where people didn't immediately recognize her from afar

and stopped them now and then for small talk with the flowergirl. It was selfish, but he wanted to

have her to himself for a while - and what with his SOLDIER duties, they already had limited time

for each other. Although a small part of him _was_ hoping that she might get over her fear.

Aerith dropped her gaze back to the flowers she was tending to, wiping some dirt off a petal or

plucking a dead leaf off. Granted, the day was warm and the sunshine coming in through the hole

in the ceiling hinted at the fair weather. And the Slums, already gloomy with lack of sunlight or

fresh air, felt depressingly heavy and humidity clung to the inhabitants' skin.

Slowly, she patted the dirt off her hands and stood up.

"Well .. okay. I guess it's worth a try." she said.

"Great!" Zack jumped up into a standing position and they began to set off towards the train station.

Aerith thought of the upcoming prospect of being outside, seeing the sky and wondered how she

felt about it. Part of her was excited, she actually loved the sky but it just frightened her as well and

a much larger part of her was controlled by that feeling. Trying to surpress or ignore it, she thought

that she was lucky Zack was going to be with her. Having him with her was bound to make it a bit

more bearable to her. Alone, she would have been terrified to even make the decision of going.

"Aerith?"

His voice ripped her out of her thoughts and she noticed that they were already at the station,

the soldier had already begun ascending the steps to the platform while she was standing quite

still at the bottom of them. She gave herself a little push and caught up with him.

* * *

><p>Even as they climbed the other stairs to Sector 8, Aerith noticed a change. There was a buzzing of<p>

random conversations going on all around them, a lot of people walking past them in opposite directions,

sometimes being close to knocking into somebody else. And maybe she was imagining it, but they also

seemed to be walking much faster than what she was used to seeing.

The last step taken, they were in a side street that led to the main road of Sector 8. Tall buildings were

to each of their sides, casting them rather in the shadows. Some brightly lit posters on the walls caught

her attention and from afar she could hear the gurgling of a fountain, which she thought might put her

a bit at ease. She generally felt comfortable around water. As they were about to step out into the

lit part of the sector, Aerith suddenly grabbed Zack's arm and clung to him, as if for dear life.

The soldier looked down in surprise while she kept her eyes to the floor.

"Sorry .. I've .. never really been to the other Sectors before .." she admitted shakingly and could almost

hear Zack beginning to smile. He carefully pulled one of her hands off his arm and gripped it into his own.

"It's okay. I'm here." he said and, as if to demonstrate his point, squeezed her hand slightly.

Both stepped out into the open part of the sector and Aerith's eyes flurried around, taking in the wide

openness of the place, the sheer amount of people walking and didn't even dare to lift her eyes above

the limit of the lowest building's roof.

"So .. did you have anything planned?" she asked Zack, trying to distract her mind.

"Well .." the soldier thought for a while, scratching the back of his head slightly. "One of the 1sts is always

quoting LOVELESS, so I was sorta wondering if it was worth watching. See if it's any good."

Aerith dimly remembered reading a few of the verses, having found some pages out of an old, torn LOVELESS

volume and had found the few things she read interesting. "Let's watch it." She nodded and stumbled slightly,

hastening her step to keep up. Her legs had suddenly felt like lead and unable to move, but then she couldn't

help but be fascinated by the sheer amount of bright lights and advertisement in the street that Zack had

led her to.

They managed to get some tickets for a LOVELESS show that was about to start, so they hurried into the

room with other watchers and sat down in large, comfortable chairs covered in red velvet. The room was already

dimmed and only half-lit silhouettes of the other people were visible.

"If you get scared you can jump on me, I won't mind." Zack leaned over and whispered to her. A bit surprised,

the girl turned her head towards him.

"Scared?"

"Well, there are some pretty violent fight scenes, apparently .."

"Is that why you chose this?" she asked and saw Zack getting flustered, almost stuttering as he was trying

to deny any thought like that. She giggled and shook her head slightly. "Just kidding."

Leaning back, she felt herself relax. Being inside made her feel a bit more secure, she could tell how her

heartbeat was slowly steadying itself back to a normal rhythm, having begun to pump wildly ever since they had

stepped into the sector.

* * *

><p>Aerith was leaning against a cool wall, sidling herself slowly into the shadowed part. Her ears and head were<p>

buzzing with dozens of voices talking to her, confusing her thoughts and mixing them up, strange ones slipping

in and back out. Her stomach was tightening itself in an unpleasant way and her knees were shaking. Trying to

calm herself down, she took a deep, shakey breath and absently rubbed her forearms, hoping that a sudden

burst of warmth would stop the trembling.

LOVELESS had ended after several hours, the way they had interpreted the last Arc, that was lost ages ago,

was interesting and had a rather surprising way of ending things. Most of the people had begun discussions

about the ending, about how _they_ thought it was supposed to be, as they left the theatre. Even Zack and

Aerith had talked, although both hadn't known much about the other arcs to really form an idea on the

ending.

Zack had left a few minutes ago, getting them some refreshments, and told Aerith to wait as he didn't want to

drag her all over the place, making her feel lost or overexert herself. Now, though, the flowergirl was hoping

that he would hurry back. Standing alone in the open made her feel incredibly vulnerable and she had no way

to distract herself from the voices coursing through the air. With Zack, his presence alone already managed

to make her feel a bit more normal.

"Here."

Zack held a soda can towards her. Aerith, surprised by his sudden appearance, took it with a 'thanks' and

tried to pull herself together, standing as relaxed as she could without the trembling beginning all over again.

However, she didn't open the can, just held it with both hands, feeling the coolness slowly numbing her

fingertips, the condensating waterdrops dripping along her wrist down to her arms and off her elbow.

"Aerith ..?" the soldier looked at her, seeing how pale she had gotten.

The voices were getting louder, no matter how much she tried to ignore them, she couldn't and her fingernails

crawled themselves into the can's soft aluminium, her eyebrows contracted to a single furrowed line. Trying

as hard as she could to feel at ease, it didn't work and her stomach churned, her whole body shaking, telling

her that she did not want to be where she was. She didn't want to give in to her subconscious urge to

run away, hide in a dark spot, she didn't want to ruin their date. They barely had any time for each other,

her giving up like this would ruin everything and Zack would hate her for not being able to handle such

a crude fear. She knew she couldn't blame him, he didn't know about her ancient heritage, letting her hear

the lamentations of the dead.

"Aerith .. Aerith, come on .." his voice urged her slightly, gripping her by the shoulders and the girl was

aware of how she was being nudged to move. Relying on him to take her wherever, she clung to the soda can

and kept her eyes shut, only knowing where they were going by a few things.

They were walking down some steps, small hard stone steps leading them deep down, and she realized they

were in the staircase leading to the lower levels of Midgar. Zack's voice was deep and urgent, talking to her

in a whispered tone as gently as he could while walking down the steps next to her, but she could barely

hear him. She slipped on one particularely smooth step and almost fell, but Zack flung an arm around her

waist and held her closer when they kept walking, albeit a bit slower than before.

Soon enough, they were back in the Slums. Nobody was out anymore, the abandoned streets were haunting

and scary, but neither of them noticed. Catching a word now and then of Zack's, the flowergirl tried to focus

her mind on that rather than what the voices were muttering, whining or sighing about. But she suddenly stopped

in her tracks. One of the voices had sounded much more distinct than before and she recognized it immediately

as her real mother's.

With a mix of a small shriek and gasp, she freed herself out of Zack's arms and ran, ran as fast as she could.

"Aerith ..!" the soldier gasped and stared after her as she fled. Hesitating for a second, he followed her.

He felt that she was bound to run to the church, where he had wanted to bring her anyway, but thought that

he should check. Not that she would just stop in the middle of the forlorn Slums' streets and let something

happen to her.

Sure enough, he saw the church's doors opening for a few moments up ahead and close. When he stood before

them, he was worried and almost scared about what he might find if he opened the doors, too, and followed her.

Wondering if he should go home, he kicked himself for thinking that and took a deep breath before entering.

* * *

><p>He made her cry.<p>

That was the last thing he had ever wanted to do to her.

Aerith was sitting on the floor in the middle of the aisle, the soda can lay forgotten by her side as she wept and

gasped, her hands busily wiping away tear after tear. She looked miserable and certainly felt like it. Slowly,

Zack closed the door behind himself and approached her. Remembering how she had comforted him during

his grief, he gently put a hand onto her back. Aerith flinched under his touch, her voice choked for a second,

and she turned around, her face tearstreaked and her eyes swollen and red.

"Aeri-" before he could finish, she had thrown herself against his chest, her arms tightening themselves around

his back and her fingers digging them into the thick fabric of his shirt. She kept her face hidden, trying to surpress

her sobs.

"I'm sorry .. Zack ..!" she gasped and felt another wave of tears rolling down her cheeks. She hated herself for

crying, wondering how weak she must appear to him and wished she could control herself more. But she couldn't.

Hearing her mother's voice had been the one that burst the bubble that had kept her terror in.

The soldier put his arms around her, holding her tight and ran a comforting hand over her back.

"It's not your fault .." he whispered into her hair. "I shouldn't have pushed you."

* * *

><p>Written in one go, so I'm not sure how things work out with this.<br>Can't really think of anything else to say right now.


	4. My last mission

I just keep writing more and more. Yes, I am obsessed with Zaerith at the moment.  
>Can you blame me? Crisis Core was actually the first VII franchise I played since the<br>Playstation and PC versions cost about 200$ and I don't have the funds for that.  
>Good thing there's the PSN.<br>Anyhow, the following One Shot focuses on some of Zack's plans on what he'll do  
>after finishing the mission in Nibleheim.<p>

* * *

><p>"The Reactor in Nibleheim seems to be malfunctioning. Monsters have been sighted close to the village<p>

and there have been some casualities already." the director told them, tapping absently at his keyboard

and stared at the display. "We don't know anything for sure, so we're sending you to the Reactor, along

with some of our mechanics. If it really is malfunctioning, it has to be corrected immediately."

The two 1st class soldiers glanced at each other, then nodded at their superior.

"Of course, we're not sending you out right away. You have the usual 24 hours before departure, but I

want you to be early. Any late member is harmful to ShinRa's image." he reminded them and gave them

a slight nod to show they could leave.

Both left the office and waited for the elevator at the end of the hall.

"Mako Reactor malfunctioning .. sounds bad." the younger one said with a sigh.

"I think the citizens won't worry about it too much. Mostly ShinRa." the other said.

"Yeah .. I was more thinking of how this'll take longer than a few days."

The elevator arrived and they entered, riding lower at a fast speed. The older of the two soldiers looked

at the younger one and smirked slightly. "Worried about missing your girlfriend?"

"S-Sephiroth!" he gasped, a flush rising to his cheeks. After a few seconds of silence, he nodded though.

Sephiroth shrugged his shoulders with a low chuckle in his chest. When they arrived at their destined

floor, they got off and Zack felt his idol give him an almost encouraging pat on the shoulder.

"Make the best of the time we have left." he said and waved lazily as he turned and walked down the

corridor to his private rooms.

The young soldier leaned against the banister, staring at the few people walking around on the lower level,

his mind twirling around the next mission and about his girlfriend. He had gotten some free time lately,

so he had spent a lot of it with her in the Slums, even if they never did all that much. But he had been sent onto

a forced vacation, after getting one mission after another. The little time he did have with her seemed to

always be too little. To be honest, he began to hate his status as a 1st class SOLDIER member. Granted,

it was only through that that he had met her, but he was seeing more and more side-effects .. and he was

beginning to feel uncomfortable in his role.

With a sigh, he stood straight and walked to his own room. It was furnitured in a pretty sterile fashion,

although some of his personal belongings were littering here and there and, actually, all over the place.

Zack let himself fall on the bed, wondering how to spend the hours before he had to leave for the mission.

Wondering if Sephiroth had told him to use the time by seeing his girlfriend, well, he was contemplating of

doing that. Especially since the mission was bound to take long, he had better see her, not knowing when

the next time would be. But he wasn't sure if he could trust himself with that.

The more time he spent with Aerith, the harder it got to leave her again. Even if he ran now, to see her

in her church, that would just leave them twenty-three hours. Even if he spent all of those hours with

her, he'd still feel like it wasn't enough and he wouldn't want to go away. He wanted to stay with her.

To not let go anymore, hold her in his arms, drinking in that scent of flowers and her, letting himself get

dizzy with it. Although, if he did that .. he wouldn't know if he would be able to stop himself anymore.

He loved her. He wanted to stay with her forever. He wanted to go on dates with her, fall asleep next

to her in the same bed, make love to her and wake up in the morning, with her lying by his side.

But .. he wasn't sure if she was really ready to go that far with him.

And he didn't want to pressure her into it. Even if he had to wait another year or more, he'd wait until

she said she was ready. But he still had times where he could barely contain his desire or feelings for

her any longer.

_Make the best of the time we have left_ ... Zack sat up, thinking that he might really go see Aerith

and spend the time with her. He loved the way her presence radiated energy to him and he would have

the chance to tell her personally that he was leaving for another mission. His phone rang suddenly.

"I was just thinking about you." he answered in a way of greeting when he saw her number on the display.

"_Really?_" she asked with a laughter in her voice. "_So .. are you going to build it?_"

"Build .. what?" he rushed through his memories, trying to remember what he said. "Oh right, yes,

the flower wagon! Yeah, I'm coming over right now to build it." His eyes had swept his room and, along

with remembering the promise he had made to her over two years ago, he also saw the materials stacked

in a corner of his room. He hung up and jumped off his bed, gathering the materials into his arms and

quickly set off to the Slums.

* * *

><p>"Sorry for the wait."<p>

Aerith was waiting in the church for him, kneeling in front of the flowerbed and smiled as he entered,

staggering slightly under his carryings. He set them on the floor and sighed slightly, feeling his back

already protesting against his action.

He watched Aerith as she walked over to him, looking at the materials with a slightly puzzled expression,

and he couldn't take his eyes off her. He traced her bodylines with his eyes, studying every single thing

about her, the way her braided hair brushed her shoulder as she leaned forward, the bright green eyes

of hers that shone with life in them. Like he was etching everything into his mind ..

"Zack?" she asked, having noticed his intense gaze on her, blushing slightly. "Something the matter?"

Ripped out of his thoughts, he laughed embarrassed with a slight flush in his cheeks as well and shook

his head. He sat down onto the floor and looked at the instructions he had gotten himself from somewhere.

He had almost let his emotions get the better of him, holding her as tightly as he could to himself and

tell her of the upcoming mission. He didn't want to tell her .. yet. No, at all.

Just pretend that he didn't leave the next day and be gone for an indefinite time.

Zack worked hard, sometimes stumbling a bit over the instructions, while Aerith watched and lent a helping

hand whenever she could. Once, when he was struggling with some particularely stubborn boards, his sweat

beginning to run into his eyes and obscuring his vision, he felt a gentle hand wiping something soft over

his forehead. He stopped, seeing the handkerchief in Aerith's hand and her sweet smile.

"Thank you, nurse." he joked and set back to work, hearing her amused giggle, feeling it sweeping over him

and filling him up with new strength.

After almost another hour, he was finally finished. He sighed and stood up, dusting his hands off. Both looked

at the wagon, the lightbrown wood against the goldrimmed tires. Aerith swayed her head from side to side,

an indefinite expression in her face.

"It's .. cute. But also .. very uncute." she admitted.

Zack sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "It's not the point. The flowers are the main."

"True .." she still didn't look quite convinced. The soldier looked at her and felt his lips stretching into a smile.

But it disappeared with a sudden pang as he remembered how he was leaving the next day. Stupid missions.

He didn't want to leave, he wanted to spend the _rest of his life_ with her .. and it suddenly hit him.

With a gasp, he slapped his fist into his flat palm and stared into nothingness for a few seconds.

Aerith, who noticed of course, looked at him in surprise. She leaned forwards to look at him and he slowly

lifted his hand into the air, the index finger tapping his temple as if he was thinking. His eyes were still

unfocused and he didn't seem to notice her at all.

"Zack? .. is something wrong?" she asked.

"Got it!" Zack cheered and thrust a victorious hand into the air, then turned to rush out of the church. "Wait here!"

Wondering what had gotten into him, Aerith stood next to the flower wagon, staring at it's rather bare outside and

remembered some old fabric. She grabbed it, then ripped it into several pieces and decorated the rim of the wagon with it,

tying some of them into ribbons.

Meanwhile, Zack paid the guy who was running the accessory stand in the marketplace, thanked him again and

ran back to the church. He was surprised he hadn't thought of that possibility before. It was so easy and he couldn't

imagine anything going wrong. When he entered the church, he was slightly out of breath and his feelings were

tumbling all over the place. He saw Aerith putting another handful of flowers into a small pot and lifting that into the

wagon. Trying to sort his feelings, he wondered where to start.

"Aerith" he said and walked down the aisle, about to start speaking again, but got two flowerpots shoved into his hands.

"Hold those for a second." Aerith said and busied herself, rearranging the flowers already in the wagon and made more

room, taking the pots from the soldier and putting those into the wagon as well. She sighed and patted dirt off her

hands. "You were saying?"

Hesitating for a minute, Zack remained silent, thinking up the best way to tell her everything he wanted to. Taking a

deep breath, he scratched the back of his head before beginning.

"Tomorrow, I'll have to leave for another mission." he told her. "To Nibleheim."

The girl was quiet, looking rather unfazed by the news, but there was a slight shadow of disappointment in her eyes.

She collected herself and cleared her throat. "How long will you be gone?"

"I don't know. But I'm guessing it'll be more than a few days. At least a month .."

"I see .." Aerith's eyes studied the floor.

"But .." he said, feeling a bit nervous. "that will be my last mission."

The girl lifted her head in surprise, looking at him bewildered and almost scared. "What, why? Are you .. are you

being fired or something?" Zack laughed slightly at that.

"No, nothing like that. I'm going to quit." he told her. "I'm quitting my job as a SOLDIER."

Aerith still looked rather confused and worried, wondering if something had happened suddenly. She had never thought

of him as hating his position or hear him complain about it. He had told her that being a SOLDIER member had been his

dream ever since he was a teenager and he had managed to climb the ranks up to the first one.

"After I quit, I'll be free." he said gently, his eyes fixated their gaze onto hers. "And then .."

He didn't continue, just kept looking at Aerith, who was beginning to feel a bit uncomfortable about his silence.

His entire behavior seemed to have changed since he ran out of the church several minutes ago.

"And then ...?" she asked carefully, her voice barely above a whisper.

Zack flung his arms around Aerith suddenly, embracing her, holding her as close to his body as he could, feeling her

soft skin despite his gloved hands, her curvy body against his and inhaled that intoxicating smell of hers as he

buried his face into her soft hair.

"Z-Zack ..!" she gasped, his abrupt movement shocking her, and she felt her arms pressed up against his chest,

feeling the muscles beneath the fabric, the protective way one of his hands was on her shoulder. But something about

it made her feel very uncomfortable and she struggled, trying to get out of his hold.

Coming back to his senses, the soldier let go right away and took half a step back.

"I'm sorry, Aerith .." he said, shocked at his own behavior. He looked away, clearing his throat in an embarrassing

fashion, with his hand covering his mouth.

Aerith tried to calm down, feeling her face growing hotter by the second and became aware how much her heart

had begun to beat faster than before. She peeped shyly at him, wondering why he had suddenly done that and slightly

afraid, but also excitedly expecting, of him to do it again.

"Well, anyway .. that's what I wanted to say." Zack stuttered. "About the mission .."

Aerith nodded and both started when the soldier's phone suddenly rang for the second time that day.

He answered, listening mostly, and finally hung up with a sigh.

".. work?"

"Yeah." he said, sighing again. Whenever he was with Aerith, his phone rang and pulled him away. "It's a small matter,

but I still have to talk with the director .." He noticed her puzzled expression.

Knowing that he had to leave, he hesitated.

Slowly, he walked towards her again and, for a brief second, leaned down and gave her a slight peck onto her lips.

Just a momentary touch of her soft lips against his, filling both of their hearts up. He turned, his hands in his pockets,

about to leave the church and knowing he wouldn't have time to drop by again to see her later. Then he felt her hand

clasping itself against the back of his shirt, stopping him from going another step.

"I .. not yet .." she stuttered, her cheeks burning a bright pink.

"Aerith .." he whispered, turning back towards her and felt her hand let go, only for both of them to play with some of

the fabric in the front between her fingers. She kept her eyes to the ground, before daring to look back up.

"N-not like .. that .." the girl mumbled, a bit unclear about what she meant. But Zack understood.

Zack pulled his hands from his pockets, one cupping her face and lifting her head slightly, pressing his lips gently against

hers again. Longer than before, feeling her heartshaped lips part slightly, fitting perfectly to each other. His arms moved

slowly around her, caressing her arms and back, before embracing her again, albeit much gentler than before, and he

slipped his recent purchase into her pocket.

Aerith closed her eyes, as did he, letting herself fall completely into the kiss, her love swelling up inside her the longer

they kept that contact. Slipping her arms around his neck, she pulled herself closer.

Then she felt his tongue gently caressing her lips, asking for entrance. Flinching, the girl backed up slightly, but caught

herself and slowly opened her mouth, allowing him to proceed further. Zack cupped her lips with his again, enticing the

unsure girl to follow his lead in his little game of loving her, caressing her tongue gently with his and feeling her, slowly

but surely, getting a bit more active.

It was with great regret on both sides when they broke the kiss, their faces barely apart. Aerith's emerald eyes had

begun to gloss over, her fingers were digging into his shirt, she didn't want to let go of him yet. Zack kissed her again,

the same way as before, until they broke off again. Aerith's expression still showed a sign of not being satisfied yet.

"I'll try to see you before I leave tomorrow." he whispered, amused by her expression, but knew he was lying. He knew

he would have no time. And Aerith nodded. She knew he was lying, too. Both remained in the embrace longer, pecking

each other's cheek or lips now and then. But both knew they had to separate now.

"I'll give you a _special_ kiss when I get back." he said before kissing her again and slowly let go.

"Call me as soon as you can." she told him and he nodded, the arms outstretched, their fingers touching until he

was too far away.

* * *

><p>Night had fallen and Zack stepped off the elevator and entered the director's office. To his surprise, Sephiroth was<p>

standing in front of the director's desk and both looked at him.

"Forgive the interruption," he said politely and stepped closer. "but I need to talk to you."

"That's fine. We already finished." Sephiroth told him and turned to leave, heading for the door.

"Director," Zack said, his determination reflected in his eyes. "I am going to quit the force. This mission will be my last."

The director sighed heavily. "Two of the last 1st class SOLDIER members quitting .."

The soldier frowned, wondering if what he heard was what his mind was thinking, but remained silent. He heard the door

open and slowly close behind him. Waiting for an answer, Zack studied the director.

"Very well. After you've completed the mission in Nibleheim, you'll be officially released from your SOLDIER job." he said,

waving his hand absently and told him to leave. Relieved, Zack headed for the door, having expected to need to fight

to be allowed to leave.

Sephiroth was leaning against the wall next to the door. "So, you're leaving as well?"

Zack nodded. "Then .. _you_'re leaving."

"Yes. After Genesis and Angeal's treatment .. I have lost faith in this company." he admitted, nodding himself, as they

waited for the elevator to open up. When it did, they entered and rode to the lower levels. Both were silent for a minute.

"I'm sure you've noticed? ShinRa is being led into a new direction." Sephiroth said. "It's the wrong direction, I can't trust

this company anymore, but .. depending on how our mission in Nibleheim will end, I might stay."

"I see .." Zack muttered, but shook his head. "It doesn't matter to me how the mission ends. I'm going to quit."

A slight smirk was tugging at the silverhaired soldier's lips. "And you will build up a life with your girlfriend?"

Zack flinched and blushed, hating how he always hit the nail on the head so bluntly. Slowly, he nodded.

Sephiroth chuckled slightly.

"Good luck to both of you." he said and then turned towards his comrade, extending his hand. "It's been a pleasure to

work alongside you, Zack." Surprised, Zack stared at his idol for a minute, but then grinned and shook his hand.

"It's been an honor on my side." he said, wondering if Aerith had already found the ring in her pocket.

* * *

><p>I love male friendship scenes! Especially involving Sephiroth, because it's such a contrast to what he's like<br>post-Nibleheim. Oh, also, the wagon described here is the Cute Wagon.


	5. Gold Saucer

I have a One Shot planned around Zack following Aerith during her journey with Cloud,  
>but since I haven't gotten very far yet, I can't write everything I want to.<br>Instead, you get this!  
>And since I had no idea what to actually write, 'This' could've been anything!<p>

* * *

><p>The green eyes studied her surroundings again. She saw the dark wood accented with gold trimmings,<p>

the furniture cushioned in blood-red and the even darker wallpaper that was peeling in places, with the

large bed she was sitting on placed underneath the window. Despite having just entered the room two

hours ago, she knew the room perfectly well.

She knew every detail of it. Of the chip on the vase that was standing on top of the scratched credenza,

of the third curtainring, hanging broken like a little wave at the top. Exactly how big the creepy spiderweb

had gotten in the lefthanded corner of the room.

The young woman sat up, feeling the springs jiggle beneath her, and leaned on the window sill. A large

amount of light burst into her view and she quickly lifted a hand to shield her eyes from it. Fireworks were

blasting in the far sky as spectators outsides exclaimed awestruck about it, people on the rollercoaster

were screaming in delight with several multi-colored ballons floating off around them. The blue cable car

was bringing a fresh batch of customers to the entrance. Even with the window closed, a lot of the

noise got into the room, albeit muffled.

Aerith looked down and watched the people below, talking, laughing, walking around and rushing off

to the various attractions the place had to offer. A shock of blonde made her start. Cloud was amongst the

crowd, but his head was hanging low. He wasn't really part of the mass, not looking around at the many

attention-seeking stalls, ignoring the fireworks displayed up ahead. Figuring that he was just out to cool

his head and think things through, she decided to not call out to him. He probably wouldn't have heard her

over the noise anyway. Aerith sighed, putting her head into her crossed arms and closed her eyes,

wondering what it'd be like to be in this place with a beloved.

* * *

><p><em>Her cheek was being caressed. Aerith slowly opened her eyes, feeling a warm presence next to her.<em>

_"Ah, good. I thought I'd have to carry you." a deep voice said, pushing the last strand out of her face._

_".. Zack!" she gasped when she recognized him. They were sitting next to each other in the cable car,_

_Zack's arm around her._

_"Who'd you expect? I __am__ your boyfriend, after all." he teased, a fake hurt look on his face._

_The car stopped, meaning they had arrived and Zack got up, stretching for a minute, and headed for_

_the exit. He looked back at Aerith who was still sitting there, looking at him with a stunned expression._

_When she didn't react when he held out a helping hand, Zack swooped down and picked her up into his_

_arms with a single smooth move._

_"Z .. Zack ..!" Aerith gasped, ripped out of her stupor and flung her arms around his neck to hold on_

_tightly. "Let me down ..!"_

_"Nothing else to do if you are so out of it." Zack sighed exasperated. "Here I am, finally free from_

_ShinRa and SOLDIER and you show how happy you are by falling asleep."_

_Aerith blushed, dimly remembering the conversation they had earlier. Zack had told her that he had_

_officially left ShinRa and was now a completely free man - unemployed, currently, but he had promised_

_to find a job soon enough. One that would support him as well as her._

_"Sorry .." Aerith mumbled._

_Zack gave her a playful jiggle. "It's okay. At least now we have unlimited time for each other." he said_

_and set her down onto her own feet, but kept holding her hand in his. Together, they approached the_

_entrance of the park._

_"Welcome to Gold Saucer and Congratulations!" the lady greeted them with a grand air of happiness,_

_stunning the young pair. "You're our one millionth couple today. As a special, the entrance, all the_

_attractions and the stay in the hotel will be free. Just show these to any employee and they'll_

_recognize you. We hope you enjoy yourselves!" While explaining, she tied pink strings to their wrists._

_Still slightly surprised, the two entered the amusement park and were immediately overwhelmed by_

_the next big thing - the many glareing lights that lit up as if it was daytime, the circular room having_

_a large map on one wall and big circular tunnel entrances leading to the various squares._

_Grabbing one of the map pamphlets, the two set down through one of the tunnels, their eyes already_

_thankful about the sudden dim lightning, giving them a rest._

_The tunnel was long, uneventfully level and only twisted once to the left. When they saw the light_

_at the end, Zack was the first out and helped Aerith to climb out. Slowly looking around, they_

_unfolded the map._

_"We are .. .." Zack muttered, trying to see which tunnel they had taken and where it had led them_

_to. Aerith's slim finger traced along the paper, stopping at something that looked like a large, twisted,_

_many headed snake. The caption above it read 'Speed Square'._

_"I don't see anything like a snake .." Aerith wondered, stopping in midsentence when she looked up_

_and saw the tracks of the rollercoaster. The train was just passing above them, circling downwards_

_and twisting it's way above and under some previous part of the track. The train went through a_

_looping, rising and falling fast._

_Zack felt Aerith's hand gripping his hand tighter as she watched the train reach the station,_

_waiting for new passengers to enter so it could start it's devilish and thrilling ride again._

_"We don't have to ride it." he said simply, sensing her reluctance._

_"No .. no, let's go. Since we're already here .." she said quietly, sounding calmer than she might_

_actually be. But she walked firmly with Zack and they sat in the train, the safety bar lowered_

_so they couldn't fall out._

_Soon enough the rest of the seats got taken and with a rough jerk the train began to ride again._

* * *

><p><em>"That .. that was quite something." Aerith said several minutes later when they got off the train.<em>

_Zack grinned, taking her hand into his and pulled her closer, almost stabilising her shakey legs._

_"You're sweet when you're scared."_

_"I'm not scared at all." she stuttered, feeling her cheeks flush but the young man just grinned._

_She really wasn't scared. That had been her first ever rollercoaster ride and she was just plain_

_excited. The looping and some other parts of the track had been rather unnervingly close and_

_blood-rushingly fast, but it had been fun. Although that slightly queasy feeling that her stomach_

_hadn't caught up with her yet was not that nice._

_"Where to next? Your choice." the young man said, pulling out the map and unfolding it for her_

_to see. Aerith's eyes flew over the map, wondering about the appropriateness of having a_

_coffin symbolize the hotel._

_".. let's just walk around. See what there is."_

_"You're the boss!" he grinned, putting the map away again and gripping her hand. Together,_

_they set down a covered pathway that reminded them of the underground passageways_

_in Midgar._

_It was obvious why Gold Saucer was so popular, despite being tough to access from the_

_outside. Hundreds of people were miling about, seeing the attractions that were located_

_over the larger part of the desert-like wasteland and separated into various parts._

_There was something for every age group. Fast rollercoasters or some of the newest_

_entertainment devices to attract young people, while some parts were quiet. At least,_

_they were quieter than the rest of the park, set back a little with more tame things to_

_experience or just to sit down._

_The arcade had several minigames that involved heavy thinking, but mixing it up with_

_activity, shrill lights and sounds and still remaining safe. Even people who weren't that_

_much into gaming themselves could have fun watching others trying out the snowboard_

_simulation game or even see them in a fake boxing match._

_And then there was the battle arena._

_Zack got giddy when he saw it, already itching to enter and prove his fighting abilities,_

_but he refrained himself from immediately rushing to the registration counter. Even after_

_Aerith said that, if he really wanted to, he could enter and show off._

_"Y'know, I didn't quit SOLDIER just to fight even more." he explained with an embarrassed grin._

_They sat in the audience for a while, watching other brave men or women try their luck,_

_but Aerith noticed Zack's eyes now and then. They both knew he would easily make it to the_

_final round, that he would've been able to easily dodge the hit that knocked the challenger_

_out cold. During a short break between challengers, Aerith patted Zack's knees and pointed,_

_saying they should leave._

_"We need to ride that!" she said a few meters further, pointing at the wooden gondola_

_that was leaving the station, another about to enter again to let it's passengers off._

_"Sure." The employee held the door to the emptied gondola open for them as they sat_

_opposite each other on the plum colored cushions._

_The door closed with a loud click and the gondola slowly ascended it's long way up to the_

_top of Gold Saucer, giving them the view over the entire amusement park. Both were quiet,_

_looking out the cut-out wooden windows. The dark sky was displayed behind the golden_

_buildings like a deep-blue velvet blanket, the lights in the sky being not stars but the lights_

_from below them. They couldn't feel the gondola actually moving, it was gliding so smoothly_

_along it's wire._

_"The gondola, .. it's completely sturdy, right?" Aerith asked as she looked at Zack who,_

_at her words, turns his gaze from the outside and to her._

_"Ah, no fear of falling." he answered._

_Aerith smiled, putting her hands over Zack's in his lap, and then stood up in a bent position_

_and turned slowly, sitting down next to him. The young man had watched her during her_

_little exercise and smiled when she leaned against him, her head on his shoulder._

_"I'm glad I'm here with you." Aerith said, smiling. "I'm glad that you are here."_

* * *

><p>The flowergirl ripped her eyes open and it took her a moment to remember where she was.<p>

Confused, she held her head and looked around. That must've been a weird dream she had

been having, although she couldn't remember falling asleep.

Or maybe her imagination had gotten so vivid to her that she got suddenly ripped back into

reality. She sighed, amazed that she still dreamt of Zack after four years. Not that she

hated it, but the dreams just hit her now and then when she least expected them.

"If it was a dream, anyway .." she muttered to herself and stifled a yawn. Eyeing the blanket

below her, she slipped underneath and curled up for warmth. If it indeed was just a dream

she was having, she was curious what was going to happen next ..

Yawning again, Aerith closed her eyes and tried to shut her mind off.

* * *

><p><em>Eyeing the rather disturbing zombie-family portrait on the wall, Aerith was waiting for Zack<em>

_to take care of the stay in the hotel. Just as wrong as the coffin representing the hotel on_

_the map, so was the exterior and interior decoration. Everything was made to look like it_

_was a graveyard, the employees being ghouls, dead people or just plain scary._

_Even the reddish-orange wallpaper had a sinister look to it._

_Yet it somehow also looked rather goofy._

_Seeing Zack waving at her from the scratched and bloody reception desk, the young woman_

_ripped her eyes off the picture and caught up with him. They ascended the stairs to the left_

_with a dark stained rug that was ripped off it's nails in places and making waves or just torn,_

_creepy fake cobwebs stringing themselves between the tiny pillars._

_"So, what are our room numbers?" Aerith asked, wondering if all rooms were labelled with_

_evil numbers or oddly chosen words. Zack grinned lazily, twirling the keychain around his_

_finger and putting an arm around her waist._

_"What rooms? We're sleeping in one room."_

_Aerith stopped in midstep, stunned, and stared at the man who seemed to not care about_

_saying that or it even being true. He chuckled, still grinning._

_"Hey, there are two beds." he calmed her down and tugged slightly at her waist to make_

_her move again. Hesitating a bit, she followed him up the rest of the stairs and down the_

_hall to a door. Zack leaned down and unlocked the door with the key, opening it wide for_

_Aerith to look inside._

_It had the same type of dark wallpaper, also torn here and there, with some green chairs_

_around a dark table. Strangely enough, they seemed to look just fine and perfectly new._

_Entering, she noticed a heavily scratched credenza with a chipped vase to her side and_

_then saw the beds. Indeed there were two, which somehow relieved her, although even_

_one was big enough to fit at least three people in it easily. A door in the wall opposite the_

_beds, which looked like it would creak, led to the bathroom._

_Zack closed the door after himself and locked it, the click seemed unusually loud to Aerith_

_and she felt a wave of discomfort sweeping over her. She walked over to one of the beds_

_and sat on the edge, trying to ignore the weird feeling rising inside of her. Trying instead_

_to focus on all they had seen in the park just a few minutes ago, she noticed that her_

_mind seemed to have gone blank and she couldn't remember anything._

_"I-I'll go take a shower ..!" Aerith gasped, jumping up from the bed and stiffly walked into_

_the bathroom, avoiding to look at anything except the floor. The door did creak when she_

_moved it and locked with a click almost as loud as the other door._

_Trying to not creep their customers out too much, the bathroom was almost normal._

_The tub, shower and sink and toilet were all kept dark in color, blending with the black_

_tiled floor. But there were no scratches, no weirdly discolored stains or anything to be_

_found anywhere. And when Aerith splashed some cold water to cool her hot face, it was_

_not colored in any other way than normal water was supposed to be._

_Sitting down onto the floor, the flowergirl sighed heavily, her heart beating fast in her_

_neck as the heat rose in her again. She was nervous. But not about anything specific._

_It was just that the entire situation seemed so unreal somehow. And yet it was slowly_

_dawning to her what had changed. Zack really was no longer with ShinRa. He wasn't_

_a SOLDIER anymore. He wouldn't be suddenly called away to a mission when he was_

_with her. He was completely free and could do whatever he wanted._

_Quickly undressing, Aerith jumped underneath the shower, feeling the hot water trickling_

_down her body. Her thoughts were circling around Zack, how he had told her that he'd_

_soon support himself and her. It dawned to her that he had meant it like a marriage proposal._

_Most likely. Well, maybe. But before he was doing that, he was catching up on what all they_

_had missed previously._

_Like dates._

_Aerith took deep breaths, trying to calm herself down and, when her breathing was turning_

_back to a regular speed, she shut off the shower and dried off. She put on one of the silk_

_bathrobes and gave her hair a few more squeezes, then slowly opened the door._

_Zack was lying on his back on one of the beds with his arms behind his head, eyes closed._

_Approaching him timidly, Aerith leaned slightly over to look him into the face._

_".. the bathroom's free .. if you want it." she mumbled quietly, seeing him open his eyes_

_at her first word. Zack sat up with a burst of energy and got up, heading for the bathroom._

_"Hey .. your hair looks good straight." he said, turning back a bit before closing the door._

_Aerith blushed, playing with one of the strands of her still wet hair._

* * *

><p><em>The room had gotten pretty dark, so Aerith had turned on the lamps on the bedside tables.<em>

_Up to then, the lights from the window outside had brought enough light in, but a few_

_minutes ago, everything seemed to have dimmed down._

_Even the noise._

_Aerith wondered why it was getting so quiet, because even after all those hours they had_

_spent in Gold Saucer, the noise level hadn't receded at all. She saw a lot of people below,_

_even more than there had probably been earlier. They were all pointing or walking, like_

_they were waiting for something._

_Curious, Aerith opened the window and let fresh air in, but barely any noise. Now and then_

_there was somebody calling out to a relative or friend, the shuffle of steps, but other than_

_that Gold Saucer was extremely quiet. Before she could get the guts to ask a random_

_passanger what was going on, a loud whistle sounded .. and with a large explosion,_

_a blue swirly firework lit up the sky._

_More swirled firework forms followed in various colors, some bursting in all at once and_

_at another time only one appeared, following several seconds later by another._

_Too amazed by the fireworks, Aerith didn't hear the door open and Zack re-enter the room._

_Hearing, and seeing, the commotion, he walked over to the window and startled the young_

_woman for a second when he suddenly stood next to her. She smiled and turned back to_

_look at the next colorful explosion._

_"Pretty .." she sighed, seeing red fireworks bursting into the shapes of various flowers._

_Zack smiled and put his arm around her, pulling her closer. They continued to watch the_

_fireworks flareing up and bursting into shapes, the crowd Oooh-ing when a particularely_

_large group burst at once. All too soon, the fireworks finished with a grand flourish of_

_continuous fireworks jumping into the air and lighting up the sky._

_The crowd below began to disperse, the noise starting up again and Aerith looked up at_

_Zack, who had also changed into a bathrobe. The attractions were lighting up again and_

_the young man bent down, kissing her._

_Closing her eyes, Aerith reciprocated the kiss, feeling like it was a perfect little gesture_

_to do after seeing the beautiful fireworks. Zack pulled her closer to him, intent to not let_

_go very soon, and he used his free hand to close the window again, blocking out almost_

_all of the noise._

_When the kiss finally broke, they barely moved away from each other, lost in the other's_

_eyes. Zack's finger was twisting a strand of her hair around his finger and a smile was_

_tugging at his lips._

_"Your hairs curling up again."_

_Aerith giggled, it seemed such a weird thing to say during that moment. She snuggled up_

_to him, trying to hide her embarrassment, drinking in his scent. Soon, they were lying on_

_one of the beds, half covered by the blanket and feeling each other._

_Like he was trying to memorize her lips and their soft heartshaped form, Zack barely let his_

_attention turn to anything else. Her hands were travelling along his arms and tentatively_

_underneath his collar, feeling his warm skin beneath her fingertips and broke the kiss off_

_with a small gasp when she felt his hands running slowly along her side. Wherever he kissed_

_her, her skin burned and she felt a tingle even through the cloth where he was touching her._

_The young man leaned closer, kissing her cheek and began to gently nibble her earlobe,_

_feeling Aerith squirm slightly beneath him as she tugged slightly at the loose bathrobe and_

_her eyes studied his muscular physique._

_There was a cute blush in her cheeks as she kept averting her gaze before daring to look_

_back, admiring the definition of his muscles, how they were usually hidden by his clothes._

_Zack smirked, rubbed the tip of his nose against hers and stared into the green eyes when_

_they focused on his own again, then kissed her once more. He was slowly playing with her_

_tongue, teaching her, and pulled at the string holding her own clothing together. Aerith pulled_

_her hands back when Zack was slipping the robe off her shoulders and let it slid to the_

_floor, making no noise._

_Feeling the warm sheets against her bare back, Aerith felt her entire face reddening as_

_she suddenly felt very exposed and covered her breasts with her hands. She turned around,_

_lying on her stomach. Surprised by her sudden movement, Zack did nothing for a second_

_before he leaned down, kissing her cheek and pushed her hair to the side, exposing her_

_soft neck and kissed that, slowly going lower. Aerith twitched, the warm tingling sensation_

_spreading from her shoulders over her back._

_"Zack .. I don't think we should." she whispered, hesitating to say it. The young man halted_

_in his action, his lips hovering an inch over her skin._

_"No?" he asked._

_".. no."_

_Neither of them moved for a while, probably waiting for the other to do something. Finally,_

_Zack pecked Aerith's cheek again and leaned down, pulling the bathrobe back up and spreading_

_it over her. When he wanted to get up, sighing slightly, he felt a tug at his sleeve. He looked_

_down at the shy flowergirl._

_"You want me to stay?" he asked, wondering if he was understanding her right. Zack caught a_

_short glimpse of her face, red enough to rival a tomato, before she turned it away and gave_

_a tiny nod into the pillow. The young man smiled slightly and got off her, lying down next to_

_her. Aerith wrapped herself into the robe and then scooted over, snuggling up to his chest._

_Both were quiet, paying no attention to the outside lights that were spilling into the room,_

_throwing funny shadows onto the walls._

_"Are you angry?" Aerith asked in a whispered voice, her eyes somewhere on the wall behind_

_him, trying hard not to look into his eyes._

_"I'm disappointed." Zack admitted with a tiny shrug of his shoulders and pulled her closer_

_to him, closing his eyes. "But I don't want to force you. I can wait."_

_Feeling a bit better, the girl tucked her head close to his neck and closed her eyes._

* * *

><p>Opening her eyes again, Aerith was lying in the bed, blushing.<p>

It wasn't that those types of dreams were completely unfamiliar to her. But somehow this

was the type of dream that had made her miss Zack even more than before. She wished

that her being alone in that bed was the dream.

Embracing the pillow and burying her face into it, Aerith sighed deeply and tried to fall

asleep again. Hoping for a dream that would rid her of her loneliness.

* * *

><p>Sorry for the long wait. I had writer's block, although I have about four or five pages<br>worth of One Shot ideas written down. And my head still keeps sprouting new ones.


	6. Nurse Aerith

And I'm, hopefully, back on track with these One Shots!  
>With this, I'm attempting a "Fever One Shot" - a type of one shot that I've been<br>wanting to write for years for a different series, but never managed to.  
>Hopefully, I can do it with this one!<p>

The measurement is in celsius.

* * *

><p><em>39.9°<em>

With a raspy sigh, Zack flipped the thermometer out of his hand and into a corner of his bed, rolled over onto his side

and slowly sat up, trying his best to ignore the dizzyness. His chest felt tight and hoarse, like the inside had been

coated with sandpaper and every breath hurt and his nose had decided to stuff up again, when it wasn't thinking of

running freely. But he still thought that the reading was wrong. He was Zack Fair, a SOLDIER 1st class - one of the

last remaining 1st class members next to the great Sephiroth.

No way could he have a cold. Or a fever. The thought alone was ridiculous!

Steadying his bare feet on the gray carpet, he headed to the single small window on the wall and ripped it wide

open, letting a stream of fresh air fill his lungs. It felt refreshingly cool against his skin and he had a fleeting

thought of perhaps really having at least a temperature. Thinking of heading back into bed, he stopped when the door

to his room opened slowly and, after a soft featured face with green eyes peeked in, then widened faster.

"Aerith ..!"

Smiling, she closed the door after herself which gave Zack a few moments to study her. His eyes flew over the ribbon

that had turned into her trademark down to the pale yellow sundress she was wearing under a white bolero jacket.

She was carrying a small wicker basket in one hand and he noticed her eyes taking in his room fleetingly for a minute.

"What are you doing here?" Zack asked, wincing slightly when the throat pain stabbed him.

"Well, you sounded funny yesterday and when you didn't show up in the church .." she answered, her voice trailing off

at the end, both knowing that his job generally kept him from appearing in their meeting place every day but also that

he was currently completely mission-free. The girl noticed another question in his eyes. "I asked at the reception desk

where your room was."

Still frowning, the man was unsure about his feelings. Of course he was glad that she came to visit him, but he felt

uneasy, knowing that she had willingly entered the company that was constantly keeping watch on her. He was afraid

that any second someone would burst into the room and drag Aerith out, forcing her into a prison cell - or a tiny and

badly kept room if she decided to cooperate .. in whatever ShinRa wanted her for, actually. On the other hand,

he didn't want her here right now. He just wanted to curl up, moan and groan in his bed, complaining about the various

aches all over his body and just letting go. He didn't want Aerith to see him look so .. weak.

"Glad to know you're worried .." Zack said, straining his voice and surpressing the urge to cough. "But you really didn't

have to come here, Aerith. It's nothing, .. really. I don't .. I don't want you to catch this." He hunched over slightly

when his chest contracted painfully and he had to cough a few times.

Aerith sighed, looking slightly exasperated at him with her hands on her hips. "I was wondering what you were doing

out of bed. Come on, lie back down. Now." Something in her voice made the soldier follow suit and lay back down,

pulling the blanket over himself. She walked over to the bed and set the wicker basket onto the floor next to it,

finally letting curiousity get the better of her and studied the entire room.

It was pretty large, but somehow furnished very little. Aside from the big bed with the dark sheets, the gray carpet

and white walls contained two thickly cushioned chairs in a corner and a bedside table. The opened window was

the only lightsource and despite it's size it brought enough lighting into the room. Walking deftly around, she found

a door on the left side that was the bathroom with a separate shower and a bathtub, easily able to hold at least

two people in it, and a door on the right side held something that might've been used as an extra washing room

with barely anything but a sink and mirror in it.

"Huh .. 1st class SOLDIERs get a lot of breaks .." she muttered as she returned to the main room and sat down

next to the bed, tucking her skirt over her feet and saw Zack nod slightly. ".. have you taken your temperature yet?"

Zack nodded again and his eyes fleeted to the discarded thermometer. "No fever."

* * *

><p>Aerith's eyes studied the room again, feeling Zack's gaze on her. "You get a lot .. but no kitchen in here?" she asked.<p>

"Ah .. either the caf or we eat outwards." he said with as low a voice as possible and saw the girl smile at him.

"Good that I prepared things already." she said and straightened up, taking the lid off the basket and revealing some

metal or plastic containers. Curious, the soldier leaned over and watched her taking some out, sometimes using her

skirt as means to protect her hands. "Do you want something warm or cold to eat?"

Confused, Zack sat up and scratched the back of his head, not sure how to tell her that he had no hunger and zero

appetite to put anything into his mouth. Perhaps she could read his thoughts, or just the bodylanguage, because

she wagged her finger at him like a warning. "You need to eat, get some strength."

"Mh .. dunno .."

"Well, I made chicken soup .. but the way your voice sounds your throat must hurt, so .." she muttered more to herself

and handed him a small round plastic container that felt cool against his hands and a small spoon. Lifting the lid off,

he found something that looked a lot like plain ice with some tiny green or yellow dices here and there and some sort

of sauce on top of it.

"Aerith .. what is this?" he asked.

"Diced bell peppers with crushed ice and grated radish with honey on top." she said bluntly. "Usually this is made without

any ice and diced radish .. but I thought grated might be easier to swallow."

Not wanting to hurt her feelings, or face a lecture from her, Zack tentatively took a spoonful of it and tried it,

feeling the ice immediately melt in his mouth, already sliding down his throat. He didn't even have to chew, it was

almost like eating roughly made ice cream. After a few more spoonfuls, he looked over at Aerith.

"Hey, Aerith .. it's really sweet you wanna take care of me, but you really don't have to. I mean .." he stuttered.

The girl leaned her head to one side, then the other. "You worried about ShinRa?" and she giggled when she saw him

getting red cheeks, embarrassed that she could read him so easily. "Actually, everbody knows me as The Cetra or as

The Ancient but only you and Tseng know anything about me. Even how I look .. nobody even knows my name .."

Zack noticed a hint of bitterness in her voice when she said the last bit. But before he could think of a way to console

her about it, she lifted herself onto the edge of the bed.

"By the way, why aren't you eating anymore? Are you too tired or .." she hesitated a second before leaning towards

him with a brash smirk on her lips. "do you want me to feed you?"

"N-no, it's .. it's fine. I mean .. I can finish .." he muttered, feeling the heat creeping up his face again and making him

feel uncomfortable. Like he wanted to prove his words, he hastened in eating and dimly was aware how much better

his throat already felt. Although he knew it was just a temporary relief.

He lay back down, letting a hand cover his eyes slightly to block out most of the light, wishing he'd just fall asleep

in a few seconds. But he knew he couldn't, his muscles were feeling tense and just the thought of turning onto his side,

to get comfortable, was painful enough to keep him from moving. He heard Aerith silently mumbling to herself and then

felt a slight weight on his bed. He peeked and saw Aerith leaning over him, reaching for the thermometer, and getting off

the bed again. She noticed him watching her and gave him an apologetic smile.

"Sorry. Try to sleep, I'll be quiet." she said with a soft voice and settled herself onto the carpet again.

A few hours later, Zack was waking up again and he groaned, his muscles seizing with pain and he rolled on his side,

curling up and trying to ignore it all. A soft hand caressed his cheek and spoke gently into his ear.

"Shh, don't move so much. Temperature .." the voice said and he felt the metal tip of the thermometer poke his lips

slightly and he opened his mouth, allowing the device access and positioned it under his tongue, waiting. He dimly began

to remember what was going on. His head felt like it was filled with heavy fog, but he remembered that Aerith had come

over to nurse him. Sighing, the soldier tried to relax, waiting for the new reading's verdict, feeling the heat radiating in

his cheeks. _Be-beep Be-beep!_

Aerith took the thermometer out and looked at the blinking displaying, sighing. "Went up almost an entire degree .."

Zack groaned again, lying on his back again and heard Aerith's footsteps traipsing over the carpet. It sounded much too

loud in his ears and already felt it giving him a headache. Then he felt something cold and heavy on his forehead and

he sat up with a start. The wet towel fell onto his lap. The soldier grumbled, his face in his hands.

"Sorry. Maybe I should've warned you."

"You meant well .." he said, waving his hand dismissively and lay back down, but felt his back arching slightly, trying to

stretch and relax his muscles. He could tell his temperature had risen and he now had a full-fledged fever. Aerith picked

up the towel and studied Zack, the way he was obviously in pain, and wondered what her mothers had said or

done to her whenever she was sick. Getting an idea, she put a free hand onto Zack's shoulder.

"Let me give you a backrub." she suggested and saw his eyes turn towards her. "That might help you relax. And the cold

towel in your neck could lower the fever." The soldier didn't move for a while, but then slowly turned and lay on his stomach,

one hand loosely lying next to his head. Refreshing the towel and pressing out all the excessive water she could, Aerith went

back and rolled it up so it fit just right on his neck and sat down on the bed. Never having really given anyone a backrub

before, she wasn't sure how to move her hands. She first slid her hands from the bottom to the top, searching for any really

tense muscle, but she couldn't quite feel any difference. He was probably sore all over.

"Aerith .." he sighed, a smirk tugging at his lips. "want to take my shirt off?"

Blushing furiously, Aerith stopped in her movement. How he could keep his flirty humor in his current condition was a complete

mystery to her. Trying to collect herself, she cleared her throat. "No, it's fine." she said and resumed to massage his back,

kneading the flesh around his neck and shoulders. Every so often, Zack sighed deeply, enjoying her gentle yet firm touch,

the way her hands warmed his skin even through the clothes, relaxing his muscles. And the towel wasn't just lowering

his fever, he could feel his headache settling down, too.

Feeling him relax under her, Aerith felt better, thinking that despite not being able to do it perfectly, she was at least able

to ease his pain a bit. Losing herself in the rather rhythmical movements of her hands, she hummed to herself.

"Sounds nice .." Zack mumbled under his breath, sounding like he was about to slip off into sleep any second.

"Ah .. a lullaby my mother used to sing for me .." the girl admitted, embarrassed that he was able to hear her. ".. should I stop?"

The soldier shook his head slightly and listened to her humming under her breath, her hands moving in sync with the rhythm of

the song. Finally, he fell asleep and Aerith, noticing, continued to massage him.

* * *

><p>Zack slowly opened his eyes, his head still fuzzy from sleep. He put his arms over his head, stretching his entire body,<p>

feeling the muscles move. He sighed, feeling better than before. He turned his head and saw Aerith with her back to him,

flipping through one of the magazines that had been on the table. Zack leaned over, sliding his arms around her neck and

making her start, even give a small shriek.

"Sorry." he whispered, kissing the back of her neck.

"Just surprised me." the girl confessed and turned slightly towards him. "Feeling better?"

"Yup. But my throat's killing me." he told her and cupped her face gently into his hand, ready to kiss her, but the girl turned

and freed herself from his grip, rummaging through a plastic bag on the floor.

"I thought it might .. so I got some stuff." she said and held up various plastic bottles. "I bought some flat water and some

vitamin drinks. I also have tea."

Zack grinned, shaking his head slightly and grabbed one of the bottles, taking a big drink from it. While her innocence was

adoringly cute, there were times when it became rather frustrating to him. He couldn't help but think what luck Aerith had

to have his patient self as a boyfriend. She wouldn't have remained a virgin very long with someone else.

Aerith was watching him, thinking how much better he even looked now. Despite there being a fresh sheen of sweat on

his forehead, his eyes were much clearer than before and he looked comfortable and rested. And suddenly, before she

could even react to it, Zack had put his arms around her, swooping her onto his lap. He held her close to himself,

his lips lost in her hair.

"You smell fresh." he said, inhaling the scent and noticing that sweet note he always found on her when he met her

in the church. The kind that made him think of wide fields filled with a rainbow assortment of flowers and wishing that

he could just take her with him to the outside world and find that place.

"I went to the church." she confessed giggling, his breath was tickling her ear. "You were sleeping soundly, so I dropped by

there when I was buying the drinks." Wether Zack was really listening was hard to tell, he seemed absorbed in inhaling that

beautiful scent from her, one hand lying loosely over her legs while the other one curled around her shoulder, tugging her

as close to him as possible.

"Hey, Zack .." Aerith whispered when his lips began to travel down, kissing her neck. Blushing, she put her arms around his

own neck and cuddled up to him. "You're sick .. you need rest." The soldier mumbled something, embracing her, but not

moving any more than that. After a while, Aerith carefully pulled her arms back and wanted to get up, but Zack tightened

his grip around her waist and shook his head, strands of hair were tickling her neck as he moved.

"I'll be good and rest .. just stay." he muttered.

Aerith sighed and nodded. "I will." She saw Zack grin and he leaned back, lying back down on the bed and threw the blanket

over the two of them. Blushing slightly, Aerith snuggled up to him, using his chest as a pillow substitute, and closed her eyes.

* * *

><p>Wohoo, first ever Fever One Shot finished! I might make another one where Aerith is the sick one<br>and Zack becomes the nurse. Mh, wouldn't mind having him as a nurse. Even in a skirt.  
>And now I need to go draw Aerith in a nurse uniform.<p> 


	7. A weird couple's routine

An idea that suddenly shot into my head. It's kind of a mixture of a one shot that I had  
>in mind earlier, but with elements of this already in it. Hope you enjoy reading this!<p>

M-Rated due to sexual contact and implications!

* * *

><p>Her breathing slowly starting to regulate itself again, she loosened her tight grip on the sheet and let her head fall<p>

against the cool pillow. His own fast breath was irregular next to hers, but she felt like they were on an identical

rhythm when she felt his weight on her and his fingers interlocking with hers. With his free hand, he pushed some

of her long auburn locks off her shoulder, kissing it lightly.

"I love you." he whispered into her ear, his voice sending a gentle thrill down her spine.

"I love you, too." she said and turned her head so their lips could meet. He sat up from her a bit, giving her room

to turn her entire body towards him, and she put her arms around his neck, giving herself entirely in the kiss.

When the kiss finally broke, they barely let any distance come between them and lost each other in the other's

eyes, their fingers sometimes caressing lightly over their cheeks or twirling each other's hair around a finger.

He leaned his head lower, kissing her neck and tasting her along the way, the porcelain skin already glistening

with that fine sheen of sweat and earlier marks of his decorating it. He put his arms around her waist, pulling

her up a bit higher as he entered her again, filling her again, and she gave a small pleased gasp.

"Don't forget about me." she begged him, her eyes filling slightly with tears.

"I won't. Ever." he told her, kissing her again as he slowly began to move in her.

_I wonder .. if we are what people would call a 'weird couple'._

Their passion ebbing away and their desire satisfied, they slowly began to collect their respective clothes from

the floor, taking their time in getting dressed again as they shot some fleeting glances at each other a few times.

He opened the door of the little room first and stepped out into the outer hall of the church with her close behind

him, clinging slightly to the back of his shirt. Their footsteps creaked on the old floorboards and echoed through

the almost empty place and the only thing to greet them was the one colorful spot in it, the flowerbed that was

growing in the large hole in the ground. Barely paying any attention to it, they approached the large doors that

led to the outside. Before he could reach for the doorknob, he felt her tugging at his shirt and he turned around,

seeing her head hanging low with her gaze on the ground. Carefully, he peeled her fingers off and immediately

pulled her into a tight embrace, inhaling that intoxicating smell of hers. Her own arms were clinging to him again,

like she was going to fall and drown if she ever let go. The two stood like that for a while, until they both lifted

their heads a bit to look at each other.

"How long ..?" she asked.

"I don't know. At least a few days. I'll see you as soon as I can." he answered, giving her a long tender kiss

before they finally let go of each other and, with a desperate look between them, he opened the door to leave.

"Take care of yourself." she said before the door closed. Standing a few minutes in silence, she sighed and turned

to walk down the aisle again and kneeled in front of the flowerbed, picking up the earlier discarded watering can.

_It's always the same game. But no matter how often we've played it through, it always feels like it's the last_

_time. Even if we're tired of it, Zack and I say our words and voice our feelings with earnesty. And we know it._

_Nobody knows of it except us. That's how it should be. Although there are times where I wonder what other_

_people might say, if they knew of our little .. scenario. I wonder .. when did it all began?_

* * *

><p><em>Two years ago, our relationship was a bit different. We had just as little time with each other as we have now<em>

_and we spent as much of it as possible together. But his company kept calling him away at the best moments._

_And then, he got called to go to Modeoheim. He had to leave fast and .. he came back a completely different_

_man. I didn't know all the details and I don't know them all now. But he came to me to pour his heart out .._

Zack sat dejected on the floorboards, his emotions slowly calming down and he rubbed his arm a few times.

".. I miss him." he finally said, his voice cracking again. He couldn't quite put his entire feelings about his

mentor's death in words. He tried and failed, but felt the burden of having killed him with his own hands.

"It .. just made me realize how dangerous being a _soldier_ is. Things are normal, every day is mostly just one

long wave of training and free-time, you get called to a mission .. and suddenly, you don't return." he said,

sitting in one of the pews and watching Aerith tending to the flowers. "I always wanted to be a hero .. rescue

a village from a monster. Or save a child from death .. just something that would make people look up to me,

see me as an idol and maybe say what a good job I did. Of course I knew about the risks, but .. maybe I just

never really registered it."

Aerith brushed her hands off and stood up, turning towards the young soldier and wondered if she could say

anything to make him feel better. Or if she was expected to. Perhaps she was just to stand here and listen

to him, give him a chance to work it out. Zack looked up and his eyes focused on her, waving her over.

"It made me think .. what if I suddenly left for a mission one day and wouldn't return. How you might feel.

What we'd regret, having our last possible moment just be a stupid, meaningless every-day thing." he told her

and she noticed a slight blush creeping up his face. "So .. I was thinking .." He didn't go on, just held her hands

in his and staring at the floor. Finally, Aerith leaned down to look into his face and squeezed his hands slightly.

"You were thinking ..?" she asked, curious. Zack tugged at her hands and she leaned down further, her ear

level with his lips, and his face firered, the soldier told her.

* * *

><p><em>'In case we suddenly get separated, let us make our last moment .. special' he had told me and I had agreed.<em>

_Whenever he is told of an upcoming mission, he'd come see me and tell me about it. To not regret anything,_

_we'd make love, confess our feelings to each other and just try to stay together as long as possible._

Aerith patted off her skirt and sighed. Her body was still warm and her legs wobbly from before. Wondering if

she should go home for the day, she fanned herself with her hands to cool down. The girl headed for the door

her lover had walked through himself just a while ago, entering the slums. They were their usual calm self,

but a few newer merchants had arrived and were calling out their products. Several people saw Aerith and

waved at her, calling out a greeting and a few kids simply ran towards her, throwing their short arms around

her legs, making her trip home take longer. The flowergirl waved back or patted the kids' heads before going

on and sighed when she arrived at her home. Seeing the two-story house, she immediately noticed the large

flowerfield behind it and, slightly frustrated, she remembered that she hadn't watered those flowers yet.

Filling the watering can, Aerith headed up the slope, rather grateful for this little distraction as it would keep

her from facing her mother right away. She wasn't sure how much her face had cooled down by now and she

didn't know exactly how much her mother knew about her relationship. But she had already gotten some

rather unnerving smirks from her. Hearing the people on the top of the plate walking above her head, she

wondered if Zack had already left on his mission.

_Although it originally started as a scenario for missions that happened about twice a month, if Zack was_

_given something that resembled a regular schedule, it became more frequent. Lately, it had become a_

_daily thing. Even if he had no missions waiting for him. But Zack told me that even the just plain old_

_training days were dangerous - that it wasn't the first time a _soldier_ would die from an accidently aquired_

_wound during training and it wouldn't be the last time. He had confessed that he already lost some_

_comrades that way._

* * *

><p>The church door opened and Zack entered, his expression brightening when he saw the girl leaning over<p>

the flowerbed. His steps hastened and he threw his arms around her before she had a chance to stand

up and turn around.

"Hey there." she grinned, patting his hand. "A bit overzealous today, aren't you?"

"Can't help it. I haven't seen you for a while." Zack answered, thinking of the previous mission that had

taken almost a month. He grinned at her. "Want a present for my return?"

"Oh, like what? Are you planning on granting me a wish?" the girl asked and the soldier laughed.

"Sure. Tell me what you want." he said and chuckled when the girl rocked her head from one side to

the other. ".. can't think of any wish?"

"Actually, I have several." Aerith confessed and turned around to look at him.

"Any idea how many?"

".. twenty .. three?" she admitted slowly, a sweet smile decorating her lips. The soldier shook his head

in a fake exasperated matter at her and handed her a pen and some paper.

"Write them down. So I don't forget." he told her and heard his phone ringing. He answered the call,

listening while Aerith wrote down her wishes. When she was done, she watched him, the fine frown

appearing between his eyebrows and his lips clenching slightly.

".. work?" she asked quietly when he put his phone away. He didn't answer, just glared at the floor for

a while. Finally, he held out his hand for her little wishlist and sighed.

"They're shipping me off to Nibleheim tomorrow." he said. "Something about a defect reactor and some

monsters roaming the town." Aerith frowned, he never told her details about his missions. And the name

Nibleheim didn't tell her anything. Although, she only been in Junon and Midgar and had been told that

she was born in the Icicle Inn. There were probably a lot of towns she didn't know anything about.

".. what will you have to do?"

"Take care of the monsters. We're taking some engineers with so they can fix the reactor, plus some

guards. Stuff like this is always a big deal to ShinRa." he said and grinned slightly. "Well, Cloud will be

with us. He'll be happy, going home .." Aerith sat herself on Zack's lap, putting her arms around his

chest, leaning her head against him and listened to his heartbeat in her ears.

"Sounds really big .. I'm going to miss you."

".. just getting there is going to take at least two days." he muttered, more to himself than to her,

and held her close to himself.

_Hearing of such a mission so shortly after he came back from another one scared me. I felt like_

_he was going to be pulled away, that ShinRa was taking him from me the way they had done with_

_my mother. Or maybe I was realizing just how much he meant to me._

Carelessly, Aerith ran a finger over Zack's naked chest, feeling the muscles move beneath it, his

warmth so comforting and how his body shook with silent chuckles.

"Hmm .." he mumbled, putting his hand over hers and squeezing it lightly.

"What?"

".. just thinking. Somehow, saying it doesn't sound right." he said, earning him a confused look from

her and kissed her fingers softly. "Just saying 'I love you' .. I don't know, feels to me like it's not

the right way to express my feelings for you anymore. Maybe there are no right words ..?"

Aerith sat up a bit to look at him and frowned, wondering if he meant what she thought.

"So .. your feelings for me are so strong that you .. can't find words to express them?" she asked,

averting her eyes when she felt her cheeks blushing.

"Pretty much."

Aerith blushed and smiled, but then her face clouded up again. "It's late .. you'll have to return

to ShinRa soon, right?" she asked, having heard from him how soldiers were expected to spend

the nights in their rooms at the company.

"Doesn't matter. I'm not going to leave you tonight. I'll stay right here with you until I have to go .."

The flowergirl straightened up, lying on top of him, and kissed him. He reciprocated the kiss, feeling

her tongue asking gently for entrance. Granting it, he noticed how carefully and softly she was

moving it, like she was trying to mould every detail of him into her mind. The soldier tugged her

closer to him, letting his hands roam over her body underneath the blanket, feeling her soft skin

beneath his fingertips. He grinned slightly when they slid over her hips, causing her to flinch slightly

and moan into the kiss. She broke the kiss suddenly as his hands grasped her breasts and began to

knead their soft form. Her mind was already beginning to go blank, thinking how unfair he was at

times, knowing her weakspots and exactly how to fuel the fire in her body over and over again.

_'I love you' are beautiful words that might say how much a person means to you and I would've_

_been happy to hear them again and again. But .. hearing him say how he stumbles to find words_

_to really express his feelings made me happier. Perhaps our love for each other had grown larger_

_over the years and we had reached a place where we just knew how the other felt about us._

_That we loved each other so much that we didn't need to words say it._

_We just knew._

* * *

><p>Aerith stood stiffly amongst the flowers, hearing the rain pound heavily on the plate above<p>

and feeling that familiar cold wave sweeping over her arms. She clenched her hands into fists,

but that couldn't stop the shaking. Almost laughing at herself, she felt her lips stretching into

a painful smirk and her eyes burning with tears.

_I was shocked. Despite having prepared for this moment so often, knowing that it was bound_

_to come at some point. Having not regretted our last moment together. I cried, because I_

_was shocked that after four years of waiting .. I had still hoped._

* * *

><p>This is actually the last One Shot I'm going to upload. I still have plenty ideas to write up,<br>but I don't want to put up anymore until I get some reviews. Even if it's just a one-line thing  
>and it can even just be your opinion on ZackxAerith, I want some reviews.<p> 


End file.
